Metal sheet drying oven



May 15, 1951 F. s. BAILEY METAL SHEET DRYING OVEN Filed Dec. 19, 1947 4 Sheets-She't l INVENTOR. I fi'aw/a/ri 5/9/45) s. BAILEY 2,553,029

METAL SHEET DRYING OVEN May 15, 1951 Filed Dec. 19, 1947 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 AT WHA/EY May 15, 1951 v F. s. BAILEY 2,553,029

METAL SHEET DRYING OVEN Filed Dec. 19, 1947 v 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 -2 w m V 2 INVENTOR. Fae-052x 6'. 55/45) May 15, 1951 v F. s. BA|LEY 2,553,029

METAL SHEET DRYING OVEN Filed Dec. 19, 1947 4 Shegts-Sheet 4 i/VWVfi/W/ g y INVENTOR.

Patented May 15, 1951 METAL SHEET DRYING OVEN Frederick S. Bailey, Morristown, N. J., assignor to National-Standard Company, a corporation of Michigan Application December 19, 1947, Serial No. 792,658

4 Claims.

This invention relates to ovens or heating devices, and particularly to those of the character employed for drying lacquered or varnished metal plates or other articles. As is well known in this art, ovens of this general character usuaTy consist of an elongated chamber through which an endless conveyor carries the varnished plates. The conveyor often consists of several chains carrying a plurality of racks for supporting the plates on end and the plates are placed in the racks at one end of the heating chamber and are carried by the conveyor to the opposite end where they are removed. In structures of the prior art, the chamber is heated by various methods so that when the plates emerge at the exit end of the chamber, they are in a dry condition.

An object of the present invention is to provide an improved means for heating the chamber and for effi'ciently and completely circulating the flow of the heated air through various portions of the chamber, whereby a uniform flow of the heated air over and around the plates being transported through the chamber be had, and maximum drying efficiency will be secured.

In the accompanying drawings, wherein an illustrative embodiment of the invention is disclosed, Fig. 1 is a side elevation of an end portion of a drying oven constructed in accordance with the invention; Fig 2 is a top plan view of the same, with parts of the oven struct"re broken away to disclose construction; Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional view, taken on the line 46 of Fig. 3, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 4, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 7 is a vertical sectional view through a portion of the oven provided with a modified construction; Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken on the line 8--8 of Fig. 7, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 9 is a sectional view t"ken on line 9-9 of Fig. '7, looking in the direction of the arrows; and Fig. 10 is a sectional view taken on the line Ill-Ill of Fig. '7, lookin in the direction of the arrows.

Referring to Figs. 1, 2 and 3 of the drawings, the body of the oven or heating chamber is generally indicated at l, the same consisting of a lengthy structure through which the varnished or lacquered plates, supported on edge, are carried by a chain conveyor, diagrammatically indlcated at 2, the plates being supported between the racks 3, seen in Fig. 3. The entrance end of the oven is located at the left, as viewed in Figs. 1 and 2, the same being indicated at 4, and the plates carried by the conveyor 2 are moved along under the hood 5 on the upper stretch of the conveyor, the chains 6 thereof being supported on the longitudinally extending bars I mounted on the transverse supports 8 extending across the oven. After passing through the oven, the plates emerge at the opposite end thereof, not shown, where they are removed from the conveyor. While the plates are passing through the oven they are subjected to the action of a flow of heated air passed around them to dry them, and the present invention relates to means for thoroughly and effectively circulating the flow of the heated air around the plates. The air within the oven is preferably heated by gas burners to be described and above the top of the oven is a duct H connecting to suction fan mechan sm l I by means of which odors or gases may be exhausted from the interior of the oven.

In the air-circulating arrangement shown in Figs. 3 to 6 inclusive, the gas burners are shown at l2, each of which includes a horizontal portion [3 having a purality of jet openings formed by a metal mesh or grill It, the flame being directed upwardly therethrough to heat the air in the oven. The gas is conveyed by the piping l5, entering through the bottom 96 of the oven, from a suitable gas supply. Located between each pair of burners i2 is a pair of fans, indicated respectively at IT and 18. The fan I1 is mounted in the side wall IQ of the oven, wh le the fan shown at [8 is mounted in the opposite side wall indicated at the fans being located opposite to one another and directing their blasts in a direction toward one another. Each fan has its own motor 2| and shaft 22 surrounded by the housing 23 mounted in the side wall of the oven.

Located along one side of the fan l8 and extending inwardly from the wall 20 of the oven is a vertical partition or baffle 24 which extends partly across the oven and terminates at the fan 1?. A similar vertical partition or baffle 25 extends from the opposite side wall IQ of the oven, said partition or ba-fiie terminating at the fan l8. This arrangement results in the formation of a compartment or chamber in which the two fans ll and I8 are located, such compartment being partly closed at the top, or above each of the fans, by the vertical plates 26 and 21. The central portion of the chamber is open at the top so that air may be projected upwardly by the fans through baflle members 30 and 31. Extenda V-shaped deflecting means located between 1 the two fans. The structure just described constitutes a heating and air-distributing unit which, described generally, consists of a pair of fans, facing one another, the space between the fans being bounded at the sides by the vertical partitions or bafiies 24 and 25, and each of these bafiles terminating short of the wall of the oven opposite to that from which the bailie originates.

This arrangement is suchthat an air passageway 32 is provided around the free end of the partition or baffle 24, and under the vertical plate 21, to permit air to be drawn in by the fan l1 and forced upwardly thereby through the baflle member 3! to reach the plates carried by the chains! and racks 3 moving along above the baffle member 30. 1 At the opposite side of the oven, an air passageway 33 is provided between the free end of the vertical partition or baflle and the wall 25 so that the air heated by the burner adjacent to the partition or baflle 25 will be drawn through said passageway by the fan I 8 and'forced thereby through the baflle member 31 upwardly around and between the plates carried by the chains'2 and racks 3.

' From the foregoing, the operation of 'the structure will be readily understood. The chains 2 and racks 3 carrying the varnished or lacquered plates on the upper stretch of the conveyor, carry the plates along above the fans I! and I8 and burners I2, the heating and air-distributing units consisting of the fans and burners grouped as described, being located at desired spaced intervals along the. length of the oven, and not necessarily uniformly spaced apart. The air heated by the burners I2 is drawn by the fans I! and I8 through the air passageways 32 and 33 at the ends of the vertical partitions or bafiies 24 and 25, and is forced upwardly by the fans through the baflie members and 3! to reach the plates and be thoroughly circulated around the same, thus resulting in rapid drying of the coatings which have been applied to the plates. Between each of the heating and distributing units as above described, are the vertical separators 36, the same cooperating with the adjacent vertical partitions or baffles 24 and 25 in forming air burner chambers that terminate in the passageways 32' and33 leading to the fans Hand l8." 1

In the embodiment of the invention shown in Figs. 3 to 6 inclusive, an arrangement is disclosed wherein each pair of the fans I! and I8 is'disposed between a pair of burners and the two vertical partitions or baiiles 24 and 25 which confine the'fans between them are both short of reaching the walls of the oven'opposite to those from which these partitions or bafiles originate. In the embodiment of the invention shown in Figs. 7 to 10 inclusive a slightly different arrangement is shown, wherein a pair of burners 40'and4l are located side-by-side or close to oneanother in a group and adjacent to a vertical partitionor baflie 42 which extendsonly from one another in the walls and directed inwardly toward one another, a pair of spaced vertical par-.

one of the fans to the other fan. At the top of the vertical wall or partition 42 is an inclined deflector plate 43 which extends completely across the oven and which is provided with an angular edge 44 of flattened V-formation, thus allowing ample spacing between said edge and the adjacent vertical wall 36, the latter wall extending across the oven from one of its side walls to the other. Since the vertical wall or partition 42 extends only through the central portion of the oven, or from the fan H to the fan I8, the spacing between the opposite ends of the wall or partition 42 and the side walls 19 and 20 of the oven results in the passageways 45 and 46 through which the heated air can be drawn by the fans to be directed upwardly thereby through the deflector members 30 and 3| to reach the plates and, be circulated around the same.

It is to be noted that in the above embodiment of the invention, the second vertical partition or baille, or that indicated at 41, extends completely across the oven, or from one of its side walls IE to that indicated at 20. The horizontal plates 26 and 21 are similar to those described in the embodiment of Figs. 3 to 6 inclusive and extend above the fans. The result of the construction described, is that the two fans are enclosed by a box-like structure completely closed at one side by the vertical partition or bafile 41 and open at the top in its central portion, or above the bafiie members 53 and 3|. The vertical partition or bafiie 42, being located only in the central portion of the oven, provides the passageways 4'5 and 45 at its ends which establish communication between the two fans and the two burners placed in side-by-side relation in the heating chamber located between the walls 36 and 42. The arrangement is such that the air will be drawn down over the deflector 43, will be heated by the burners over which it passes, and then drawn through the passageways 45 and 46 to be forced upwardly through the baffies 3B and 3| by the fans to reach theplates and dry the same while the plates are moved above the bafile plates 35 and 3| from one heating unit to the next.

The arrangement described distributes the heated air around the plates and circulates the same through the oven so that as the plates emerge from the egress end of the oven, they are uniformly and completely dried throughout their surfaces.

While I have shown and described several embodiments of the invention, it is obvious that the same is not to be restricted thereto, but is broad enough to cover all structures coming within the scope of the annexed claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a structure of the character described, a drying chamber, a conveyor movable therethrough for carrying plates to be dried, the chamber including apair of spaced vertical walls, a pair of fans mounted diametrically opposite to titions disposed between the fans and extending across the chamber, each of the partitions extending only part way across the chamber whereby access by air to one of the fans around an end of said partition is provided, an elongated heater extending crosswisely of the drying chamber and located adjacent to said partition, a deflector above the heater, and an angularly disposed vaned deflecting bafile in front of each fan and through which heated air is projected by the fans to reach the plates carried by theconveyor,.the.

baflies co-operating to form a V-shaped structure.

2. In a structure of the character described, an oven having side walls, a fan carried by each of the side walls, the fans being located diametrically opposite to one another and directed inwardly toward one another, a pair of spaced partition members extending across the oven, the fans being located between the partition members, the space defined by said partition members being open at the top, a pair of vaned inclined bafiie members located between the partitions and between the fans and placed together to form a V- shape and tending to direct air projected by the fans upwardly out of the open top of the space between the partition members, one of the partition members having a vertical edge in contact with one of the sides of the oven and having its opposite vertical edge terminating short of the other side to provide an air passageway between its latter edge and the latter side of the oven through which air can be drawn by one of the fans, the second partition having an edge in contact with the latter side of the oven and terminating short of the other side to provide an air passageway through which air can be drawn by the second fan, and a heating chamber arranged alongside of each of the partitions, said heating chambers being each partly closed at the top by an inclined deflector plate.

3. In a structure of the character described, an oven having a pair of spaced, parallel, verticallydisposed partitions extending across the oven, a pair of fans at the inner side walls of the oven facing toward one another between the partitions, one of the partitions terminating short of one of the sides of the oven, the second partition terminatin short of the opposite side of the oven whereby air can be drawn around the ends of the respective partitions by the fans, a pair of inclined baffle members between the fans and between the partitions, horizontal plates between the upper ends of the baffle members and the side walls of the oven and above the fans, and heating chambers adjacent to said partitions, air from said chambers having access to the fans around the ends of the partitions.

4. In a structure of the character described, an oven having a pair of side walls, each of said walls being provided with a fan directed inwardly within the oven, an air chamber between the fans defined by a pair of spaced, upstanding partitions, one partition terminating short of one of the sides of the oven, the other partition terminating short of the opposite side of the oven, each partition carrying a laterally-extended inclined deflector plate for a burner, a burner in the oven below each of said deflector plates, a pair of inclined baflie members between the partitions and between the fans for deflecting upwardly air projected by the fans and a horizontally-disposed plate located above each fan and between the upper ends of the bafile members and the respective sides of the oven.

FREDERICK S. BAILEY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

